Partnership includes CDPL, MPLS, Main Street Morgantown
Some of literature’s favorite characters have escaped — and the only way to find them is to visit downtown Morgantown to take part in a community scavenger hunt.
The hunt is the result of a collaboration between the Morgantown Public Library System’s Clinton District Public Library and Main Street Morgantown.
“We wanted to give people something fun to do while window shopping,” said Sarah Palfrey, MPLS director.
It’s also a good way to get out of the house and have fun in a safe, socially distanced way, she said.
Starting Monday, a dozen characters, such as Cat in the Hat and The Very Hungry Caterpillar, will have 8-x-10 black silhouetted cutouts in 12 downtown business storefront windows.
To participate in the scavenger hunt, visit any MPLS location to receive the handout or download and print it out from any MPLS Facebook page. Then, visit downtown and find each character, using the handout to track their locations. The silhouettes will be up through Dec. 5.
The completed form can be turned in at any MPLS location by Dec. 7 to be entered into a prize drawing.
One person will receive a $50 gift card and two people will receive $25 gift cards to downtown businesses, provided by MPLS.
Main Street Morgantown’s executive director Barbara Watkins said the silhouettes are in the storefront windows so people don’t have to go inside each business if they don’t want to.
However, she always wants to encourage people to support downtown’s businesses and thanked everyone who does.
“If you have something you need to buy, please come down and see what we might have first,” Watkins said, adding many businesses downtown sell things that can’t be found in big box stores.
There are also lots of restaurants downtown that can’t be found anywhere else, so visitors to downtown can enjoy a delicious, unique meal while they shop, she said.
Palfrey said the library is excited about taking things outdoors as part of the COVID-19 pandemic because it’s given them room to try new things.
In addition to the hunt, MPLS has a book walk set up — where pages of “Hiking Day” by Anne Rockwell are printed out and posted along a path — at Krepps Park between the playground and dog park.
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